Four decades.
One commitment.
The LEGO Foundation is established
On 10 December 1986, the LEGO Foundation was established as a Danish corporate foundation by the Kirk Kristiansen family, under the name Fonden af Tiende December 1986. Five years later, it would be renamed the LEGO Foundation. The Foundation's first Chair was second-generation LEGO owner, Godtfred Kirk Kristiansen, with his son Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen as Deputy Chair. It was a family commitment to improving children's lives through play.
Ownership formalised
The LEGO Foundation formally purchased 25% of the shares in the LEGO Group, cementing the financial relationship that underpins its philanthropic mission to this day.
New leadership
Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen, third-generation LEGO owner, was elected Chair of the Board, continuing the family's active stewardship of the Foundation's direction and values.
First large-scale donation
The Foundation made its first large-scale LEGO charity donation, sending 1,800 Play Boxes to Edacom in Brazil, an early expression of what it means to support children through learning and play.
First government partnership
The LEGO Foundation signed its first Memorandum of Understanding with the Ukrainian Ministry of Education and Science, an early signal of the Foundation's ambition to work alongside education systems.
Capital of Children
The Capital of Children initiative was launched as a public-private partnership with Billund Municipality, working to make Billund the world's best place for children to grow up.
Building for the long term
The International School of Billund was established with funding from the LEGO Foundation. Thomas Kirk Kristiansen, fourth-generation LEGO owner, joined the Board of Directors of the LEGO Foundation. The Foundation also approved its first Theory of Change, leading to the "Re-defining Play, Re-imagining Learning" strategic direction.
First grants to UNICEF and Right to Play
The LEGO Foundation made its first grants to UNICEF and Right to Play, forging relationships with two of the world's leading organisations working for children in challenging circumstances. Together with the LEGO Group, the Foundation launched local community engagement grants.
Expanding the partnership portfolio
The Foundation launched a hospital grant for children through Ole Kirk's Fond, and gave its first grant to BRAC, one of the world's largest development organisations. It was a year of new relationships that would deepen in the years ahead.
A generational transition
Thomas Kirk Kristiansen took over as Chair of the Board from his father Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen, who became Deputy Chair, as the fourth generation of the owner family took the helm, carrying forward a commitment that began 30 years earlier.
Playful Learning comes to Denmark
The LEGO Foundation launched its first Playful Learning programme together with University College Copenhagen, bringing evidence-based approaches into Danish early childhood education.
The largest grant in the Foundation's history, at the time
The Foundation committed 100 million USD to the Play to Learn consortium, in partnership with Sesame Workshop, supporting early childhood development for children living in refugee settings in Bangladesh and the Middle East. It was a clear statement of intent: the Foundation would focus its resources where children needed them most.
Doubling down on humanitarian education
A second 100 million USD grant was committed, this time to the PlayMatters consortium, supporting early childhood education for children affected by crisis in East Africa.
Responding to a world in crisis
When the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted children's learning and wellbeing on a global scale, the LEGO Foundation acted. More than 200 million USD in grants was committed to partners and LEGO Local Community Engagement programmes, ensuring children could continue to learn and be supported.
Learning by touch
The LEGO Braille Brick was launched in partnership with the LEGO Group, making tactile learning tools available to blind and visually impaired children.
Celebrating 90 years of LEGO
In celebration of the LEGO Group's 90th anniversary, 10 organisations received grants totalling DKK 900 million through the Build a World of Play Challenge.
New leadership, renewed purpose
Agnete Kirk Kristiansen, fourth-generation member of the Kirk Kristiansen family, joined the Board of Directors as Deputy Chair. Sidsel Marie Kristensen became CEO of the LEGO Foundation, bringing deep strategic expertise from her time as Executive Vice President at KIRKBI A/S.
New ground in Greenland and Denmark
The Foundation awarded its first grant in Greenland, supporting the voices of Greenlandic children. In Denmark, the Centre for Better Childhoods was launched together with the Novo Nordisk Foundation and TrygFonden, with a DKK 50 million commitment from the LEGO Foundation.
Sharpening the focus
The LEGO Foundation launched the Every Child's Daycare programme in partnership with Kommunernes Landsforening and University Colleges in Denmark, its first large-scale outreach programme in the country, reaching children in nurseries and kindergartens across Danish municipalities.
A partnership, scaled up
Internationally, a new 50 million USD partnership with BRAC was agreed to reach 40,000 children living in crisis settings, building on a relationship that began a decade earlier.
Expanding how we invest for impact
The LEGO Foundation takes a new step in its work for children, bringing grant making and impact investing together. With a USD 100 million commitment to A-Street, we make our first major impact investment partnership, supporting solutions that aim to improve learning outcomes for children in schools and at home.
Financial returns from impact investments are reinvested into new impact investments or philanthropic grants, helping us extend the impact of our funding over time.
40 years. And counting.
The LEGO Foundation marks its 40th anniversary with renewed ambition. Agnete Kirk Kristiansen becomes Chair of the Board, with Thomas Kirk Kristiansen moving to Deputy Chair after a decade of leadership. The Foundation's first major impact investment is announced, a new chapter in how we work to reach more children over time.
Expanding play-based learning for children in crisis
The LEGO Foundation renews its partnership with the International Rescue Committee with a USD 97 million, five-year commitment, aiming to reach 5 million children across East Africa and the Middle East with opportunities to learn and play.